The Bali Street Mum Project

The Bali Street Mum Project

The Bali Street Mum Project works
with impoverished mothers and children
who are begging on the streets of Kuta​

The children are in danger on the streets, often they will die young. Or be abducted and attacked by a rising number of international paedophiles entering Bali. We also work with mothers and children who are trash picking at the Denpasar Rubbish Dump.

We provide refuge and training for all the mothers and children. And a decent income so that they do not need to take their children back to the streets or trash pick. At the same time we sponsor their children through school, provide nutrition and better living conditions.

We work with two different groups of impoverished women and children

The first group is families from the mountain villages on Mount Batur and Agung. These villages have no water, no schools, no medical clinics. For at least 3 generations the mothers of these villages have brought their children to the streets of Denpasar and Kuta to beg. The children are sent onto the roads to approach cars at traffic lights and sell bracelets. Their mothers will hide by the side of the road. The children are at great risk from being assaulted and kidnapped by international pedophiles and the pollution from the cars. They often die young. When they come to Denpasar they live in huts beside the river.

We work with the mums to teach them new skills: making jewelery, hand sewn dolls, bags and other items. They are paid an income and incentives to not take their children to the streets. The children are schooled. The small children – by a part-time teacher, and the older ones are going to a bridging school. We work with 20 mothers and around 50 of their children. We are able to pay the mothers an income but rely on donations to school the children, move the families into a safe house, provide them food and medical help.

Here are stories of a few of our kids

Jemi

Jemi was begging on Sunset road for 11 years. When we first met her she had dark circles under her eyes and was constantly ill. Jemi has been going to school and will live in our safe house.

Kadek

Kadek is 9 years old, she sells bracelets on the streets of Kuta with her mother from 10 am in the morning until 8 pm at night. We are working with her mother providing housing and teaching her skills and she has agreed that Kadek can go to school.

Subur

Subur and his brothers and sisters have been begging their entire lives. When I first met Subur he was wearing this “Red Hot Chilli Peppers” t-shirt and carrying an old red umbrella with a wide grin. Six months before that Subur told his parents he no longer wanted to beg. So they sold him to a “boss”. Subur had been coming to our refuge for 2 years. I gave him a telephone earlier in the year, so that he could call me if he was in danger. One day he did call and told me he felt unsafe and wanted to go to school. It took me two days to find him in the large town of Mengwi. Subur did not know where he was. I had to pay the “boss” to rescue him. Subur is now in our safe house. He goes to school and wants to become a policeman.

Baby Jimi

Baby Jimi is Subur's baby brother. There are 12 children in the family. We work constantly with this family and their mother. But there are times she takes her babies back to the streets as they can bring in 900,000 on some nights. Diandra, our Social worker visits the family every night with money, food and medicine. Ibu Ngidup makes some of our jewellery and we pay her a bonus to try to dissuade her from taking her children back to the streets.

Agus

Agus is 10 years of age. He was selling bracelets for 8 years in Kuta. His mother now works with us selling at the markets and making the dolls. Agus is a little champion. He is HIV positive and had been very ill in recent years. Agus now has the medical attention he needs. We take him to the hospital once a month for his medication. We have moved Agus and his mother into a good new kost and purchased a new bed and fan for them along with a water cooler and fridge. Agus now goes to school.

The second group are Rubbish dump mums' children, here are two stories of our kids

Nadia

Nadia has grown up on the rubbish dump all her life. It is smelly and hot. Her mother was picking through trash looking for recyclables to sell. Earning $1 to $2 a day. Her mother Ibu Ketut now makes the glasses from recycled bottles. We have purchased the machinery and funded her start up to make this possible. She now earns $15 to $20 a day.

Lombok Boy - Leo

Leo was wandering around the rubbish dump scavenging for food when he was found by the mothers that live in this community. They have taken care of him. Fed and clothed him. Our social worker has been working closely with him and trying to find a good childrens home for him. Leo was born in Lombok. He was sleeping in the back of his parents truck when it crashed one night killing both his parents. Leo lived on the streets. He was picked up by a European man and taken to Bali, where he lived with the man in his villa and was sexually violated day after day. After 1 month the man closed the villa put Leo back on the streets and left Bali. We are taking care of Leo now in our safe house.